Many portable electronic devices (such as mobile phones, portable DVD players, tablet computers, handheld televisions and portable music players) are being designed with thinner and smaller form factors. Many of these portable electronic devices include one or more batteries. The batteries are often rechargeable and may be replaceable (readily removable by a user, usually without specialized tools, and capable of ready replacement). While physically smaller, these portable electronic devices often require the same power or energy as their predecessors but have less internal area to dedicate to the battery. In response to the limited available space, batteries themselves are becoming smaller and thinner in order to meet the requirements of these form factors. Typically, these smaller batteries may produce and store less power. If smaller rechargeable batteries are used, or if power demands on the batteries are increased, these batteries may need to be recharged more frequently.
Within these devices, rechargeable batteries are often preferred by users over non-rechargeable batteries as rechargeable batteries typically need to be replaced less frequently and are more cost-effective. Conventional rechargeable batteries require an external power supply to recharge. In some cases, the portable electronic device will need to be plugged into this external power supply, such as an electrical socket. In other cases, the battery may be removed from the portable electronic device and charged in an external battery charger. Therefore, either the portable electronic device will not have power when the rechargeable battery is charging, or a user will require more than one rechargeable battery in order to continue to use the portable electronic device when one rechargeable battery is in the external battery charger.
Other aspects and features of the present disclosure will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying figures.